May 5, 1873 is Foundation Day for the Houston Congregation of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament, for it was on that day that Mother Gabriel Dillon and her Sister-companions first experienced the joy of having Mass offered and the Blessed Sacrament reserved in the chapel of the former Franciscan Monastery where they were living, across the street from the "old" St. Vincent's Church at Franklin and Caroline Streets.

It was not until November 15, 1873 that, with their number increased by three, the Sisters moved into the partially finished new convent on Crawford Street, by Annunciation Church. In January of 1874, Incarnate Word Academy opened, and, a few months later, students were accepted as boarders. The noble work of Catholic education continues to flourish at this location today, without boarders; and Incarnate Word Academy has the distinction of being the oldest permanent Catholic school in the city of Houston. Our first Sisters accomplished so much in Houston, a young growing city of some 10,000 people, in a very short time!

With more Sisters arriving from France and Ireland, they opened and staffed schools, and in some cases even paid for the buildings which would later become parish property. By 1919, the Sisters were ready to staff St. Mary's School in Temple, Texas, the first "mission," to be followed shortly by several others throughout the state.

The courage and vision of the early Sisters, coupled with the enduring grace of God, has continued to energize the congregation over the years. In addition to staffing elementary and high schools, the community moved the motherhouse and novitiate to a 38-acre tract of land in Bellaire in 1932. There, they also built a co-educational high school in 1955, and a junior college in 1957, the latter for Sisters in formation. Another move occurred in 1982 with the sale of the Bellaire property and relocation to Bradford Street in the city of Houston. This time, the church next door was the "new" St. Vincent's.

In 1962, in response to the request of the Holy Father that, "each Religious Community will send Sisters to the missions in South America and Central America," the community sent sisters to Huehuetenango in Guatemala. From 1965 to 1981, a number of Sisters worked there. In 1981, this undertaking became the responsibility of the Incarnate Word Sisters in México City.

In the 1980's, our ministry focus expanded to include many levels and areas of education, as well as ministries in pastoral and social services, all this in accord with the talents and gifts of individual Sisters and the needs of the times.

In recent years, it has become easier to know better Jeanne Chézard de Matel and the history of the Order. This is possible, in great part, thanks to the efforts of the Sisters who continue to make the translations of the writings and early history more accessible than formerly.

The Sisters in the community of Houston walk faithfully in the footsteps of their forebears, so that the Incarnate Word may be adored and praised by all generations to come! In the spirit of the hymn, they say, "grace has brought us safe thus far, and grace will lead us home."